After a spate of drownings over summer, research has revealed the reasons why people continue to swim at unpatrolled beaches, despite the warnings. With approximately one in five of NSW’s 721 beaches having lifeguards and surf lifesavers, chances are that thousands of holidaymakers will be swimming...
Here's how you can help, writes Mandie Shean Starting school is an important event for children and a positive experience can set the tone for the rest of their school experience. Some children are excited to attend school for the first time, yet others feel anxious. Back...
Thomas Britz looks at the children’s puzzle game that harbours a mathematical paradox or two Have you played the puzzle game Tangram? I remember, as a child, being fascinated by how just seven simple wooden triangles and other shapes could offer endless entertainment. Unlike LEGO, the Tangram...
The ‘right’ school for your child is probably right around the corner, writes Rosemary O’Brien. I’m at the gym, in the change rooms, after my weekly circuit-training session. Sam is there too – she does the same Thursday-evening session. She has a question for me. It’s...
Australia’s preschool expansion ‘has not better prepared’ kids for school, report researchers Ragan Petrie and Marco Castillo Since 2008, Australia has spent more than A$11 billion dollars over ten years to expand government-funded preschool (or kinder in Victoria) for four-year-olds to better prepare children for school. But...
Elvira Kalenjuk reports that recent data from the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) shows that many Year 9 students are writing at standards well below expected levels. Several commentators have attributed low writing achievement to illness and high rates of absenteeism because of the pandemic,...
Randa Abdel-Fattah demystifies the values and practices of Australia’s Islamic schools, of which she was a pioneering student. I graduated from St Clement of Rome Primary School in Melbourne in 1990. I was one of a small number of Muslim students, but my parents didn’t feel...
A Senate inquiry is calling for a new ‘behaviour curriculum’ to try and tackle classroom disruptions reports researcher Erin Leif A Senate inquiry has found Australian students need specific lessons in how to behave. The inquiry, which has been looking at “increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms,”...
Rebecca Chaney faces the quandary of whether or not to send her daughter to school next year. I’m watching my child in the preschool playground. I have just kissed her goodbye for the day. She runs to her teacher and gives her a hug. The teacher...
Dr Simon Coghlan and Lucy Sparrow look at why violence against animals in video games is ubiquitous. Players can kill or torture non-human animals in various popular games, including Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto V. The rise of this (increasingly realistic) trend in games – along with...
